Farmers Movement Archive

Don’t come here to seek votes, says Tikait on politicians coming to UP Gate

Ghaziabad: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait on Thursday gave a veiled warning to politicians that they will be welcomed to the UP Gate protest site as guests, but no one should visit with the intention of building a voter base. His statement comes in the light of Tikait and farmers protests stationed at the borders of the national Capital drawing criticism over politicians’ visits to protest sites after incidents of violence on Republic Day in Delhi.“Yahan vote nahi milega, yahan roti mil sakti hai; galatfahmi main mat rehna (you can get food here, but not votes; do not harbour misconceptions). Don’t come here seeking votes. Jung chhidi hui hai (there is a fight going on). This is not the ‘manch’ (stage) for seeking votes. The MPs and MLAs who are coming here are our guests, but they will not be allowed to make speeches from the dais as the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (the apex body of farmers’ unions leading the protests) has issued guidelines in this regard,” Tikait said at UP Gate Thursday evening. He, however, lashed out at the government on issues of heavy barricading at the Delhi-UP border and Ghaziabad and the issue of internet services there being snapped.“The agitation will be long. Plan ‘A’ went on for 70 days, and we now have plan ‘B’. Under this, we are calling for 15 persons and one tractor to be sent from a village for 10 days of stay here. After 10 days, this group can go home and another group can come here for the protest. With such an arrangement, we can stretch this agitation for long. If we can plan the sowing of our crops, we can plan to prolong our agitation. We sow crops and they sow nails,” Tikait added. He said if need be, the farmers can resort to underground boring to get water and can also get generator sets and water tanks brought to the site. He also added that the government should talk to the core-committee at Singhu Border and decide on the issue of repeal of the three new farm laws and a new law on minimum support price.“For the past three days we have observed that some people have arrived who have different views . We have put a complete ban on speaking against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and we will not allow this from the dais as well. There are people who are uploading such videos. They must leave,” Tikait added.He said that during the Chakka jam planned for February6, protesting farmers in their respective areas should offer milk,groundnuts, fruits and food to people and should also hand over memorandums to their respective district officials. As part of the call, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha has called for state and national highways to be blocked.Since the protests began at UP Gate on November 28, 2020, there have been many instances where speakers have made comments against the government and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from the dais. After the developments on Republic day in Delhi, many politicians from opposition parties have visited the UP Gate site. Prominent among those were Delhi’s deputy chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia, Rashtriya Lok Dal leader Jayant Chaudhary, Uttar Pradesh Congress committee president Ajay Kumar Lallu and senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha member Deepender Hooda, while many others have spoken to Tikait over the phone and extended help and support.The site also saw visits by Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhay Singh Chautala and Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal, besides several others who tried to come to UP Gate on Thursday morning but were unable to cross the heavy barricading at the border. “The protest is completely political; it is a form of masked protest for political opposition. People who have no agenda are resorting to such tactics. They say that farmers are with them. But the farmers are not with them but with PM Modi. There are many people from different political parties who are going there and participating in one way or the other,” said Chandra Mohan, spokesperson and state secretary of BJP – UP.

Hindustan Times

04-02-2021

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